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MAN OF THE YEAR -047- IAN OF THE YEA IBRAHIM CONTEH WORDS: C. Isaiah Smalls II PHOTOGRAPHY: Austyn Wyche On the surface, Ibrahim Conteh seemed well-ad justed. He had it all; a Google internship for three consecutive sum mers, 3.77 GPA, Presi dential Ambassador, Phi Beta Kappa, President of the Muslim Student Association (MSA)—the list goes on. It’s difficult to imagine that he once struggled with finding his place in the Atlanta Uni versity Center. Some thing was just missing. “Whenever I go home, I feel 10 times more free: I can be myself,” Conteh said. “I think that’s one of the reasons I couldn’t be myself [at the AUC] because I just wasn’t comfortable here.” Being unable to pinpoint the source of his discom fort tormented the Cal ifornia native. “I’m my own biggest critic,” Con teh says as he reflects on his past. What began as genuine discomfort eventually transformed into depression. “I was seeking validation from institutions,” Con teh said, “so that comes from school—all these accolades—[I realized] that didn’t make me a better person.” He then had a choice: suffer in silence or seek help. Forever dedicated to self-improvement, he chose the latter. “Just seeking out dif ferent people—whether it's professional or per sonal—to guide me as I work through my jour ney,” Conteh said. “At the end of the day, peo ple can tell you all these different things, all these techniques to love your self but the biggest acti vator is to start to value the little things in life that you have.” Conteh’s breakthrough came when he did just that. The first-born child of Sierra-Leonean immi grants, Conteh realized just how blessed he truly was: “My parents came from villages [and now] they’re living in the United States,” Conteh said. “A lot of my family members are still in Africa—some of them are uneducated, some of them are—re gardless, some of them have to struggle in Sierra Leone and I’m here privi leged as hell.” This realization afforded him a whole new lease on life. Not only did Con teh begin to thorough ly enjoy his time in the AUC, it allowed him to step outside of himself and do things for others. In addition to his support system, Conteh credited his faith for helping him rediscover his purpose. “It made me realize that nothing in life is forev er,” Conteh said, “and that I would have to do the best I can with the time that I have now.” By his senior year, every thing had come full cir cle. Having overcome his own insecurities, Conteh wanted to create a space where others could do the same. With the help of various members of MSA, Conteh accom plished something that hadn’t been done since the ’80s. “We established first permanent (Muslim) prayer space in 30 years at Morehouse,” Con teh said. “That’s been a huge milestone for us for the simple fact that Morehouse has been pretty antagonistic to wards Muslim students in a certain sense.” While he will probably shrug it off, Conteh is a role model for young Black children across the country. Black faces in the STEM field are few and far between. This was something Although extremely hum ble concerning his ac complishments, there is a distinct fire in his eyes that signifies an eager ness to not just excel but to be the greatest in his field.